LAST GAME: The Binghamton Mets got a strong performance from Steven Matz, but not enough offense to top the Richmond Flying Squirrels in a 2-1 loss, on Friday night at The Diamond. Matz went five innings and struck out a season-high ten batters. The B-Met took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but were shutout over the final eight. T.J. Rivera went 2-for-4 to tie his season-long hitting streak at ten games. Paul Sewald and Chase Huchingson combined to toss three scoreless frames and strikeout six batters. Binghamton will host the first two games of the Eastern Division Championship Series against Portland starting Wednesday. The team has lost three consecutive games.

BINGHAMTON STARTER: RHP Rainy Lara is making is 20th start of the season and his first against Richmond. The righty didn’t factor into the decision in his last outing. He tied a season-high with a 7.2 inning performance. Lara surrendered just one run on five hits in a 4-1 Binghamton win over New Britain on Monday, August 25. The native of Bonao in the Dominican Republic has gone at least seven frames in three of his last four outings. In those games, he’s given up a total of two runs. Lara was signed by the Mets as a non-drafted free agent on October 31, 2009.

RICHMOND STARTER: LHP Jack Snodgrass is on the mound for the 24th time this season and his 22nd start. The southpaw picked up the victory in his last appearance. He surrendered just one run in seven innings and struck out seven as Richmond topped Altoona, 5-4, on Monday, August 25. Snodgrass took the loss in his only other appearance against Binghamton. He gave up five runs in 1.1 innings on June 18. Binghamton won the game 6-1. The Bowling Green, Kentucky native was taken by San Francisco in the 27th round of the 2011 draft out of Austin Peay University.

SPEED BUMPS: Binghamton lost their third straight game on Friday and their four their last four chances. The B-Mets have had the lead in each of the four losses. That includes blowing a ninth inning advantage on Wednesday and Thursday. The team has been held to three runs or less three times during the stretch. They lead the league in home runs with 122, but have hit just one since August 23 (eight games).

SEE YOU WEDNESDAY: Binghamton’s loss, coupled with a Portland win, on Friday guaranteed the Sea Dogs home-field advantage in the Eastern Division Championship Series. NYSEG Stadium hosts the first two games of the best-of-five starting Wednesday at 6:35 PM. Binghamton is in the postseason for the consecutive seasons for the first time in franchise history. The team was swept by Trenton in the Eastern Division Championship Series in 2013.

THREE MORE: If Binghamton goes 3-0 over their final three games, they will tie a franchise record for wins at 86. That mark was set last season when the team won the Eastern Division title. The B-Mets are 51-26 sinceJune 10.

T.J. ON A TEAR: B-Mets INF T.J. Rivera went 2-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to a season-long ten games on Friday. That ties his season long mark. The 25-year-old is hitting .568 (21-for-37). That includes eight multi-hit performances and three games with three base knocks. Rivera leads the team with a .372 average in 51 games this season.

HE GONE: Binghamton struck out 16 batters on Friday night. It’s the second most K’s B-Met pitching have tallied in a game this season. The squad has ten or more strikeouts in three of the last four games. They lead the league in that category with 1,084. Tyler Pill is in a tie for second among league leaders with 120 strikeouts in 2014.